Georgetown : The challenge of adequate drainage for the capital city of Georgetown is being tackled on several fronts by the Ministry of Public Infrastructure, Head of the sector, Minister David Patterson has disclosed.
He said that all of the main drainage canals and outfalls, which were accessible, have been cleared. He pointed out that there were some encumbrances which have thus far prevented heavy equipment from accessing some facilities. This issue was one of many addressed by the Public Infrastructure Ministry’s engineers and a visiting team of Dutch drainage engineers, with the latter suggesting the use of smaller equipment as a solution.
Minister Patterson said that via the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, correspondence has been dispatched to its Dutch counterparts as “We need to see if there is any possibility of acquiring them (the equipment) via any grants or aid that they would have.” He acknowledged that drainage has improved but several challenges still remain as,there are blockages at culverts and under bridges.These often require more work than just clearing as some structures have collapsed and have to be redone.
“Taking the good out of the bad,” Minister Patterson said that now drainage engineers are aware of where the blockages are located and these are being addressed. He stated that,“While we are not where we would like to be as a city, we are far in advance of where we were.” Sluices and pumps are operational, but there are still some constraints. “This is evident in the fact that some lower lying areas still retain water for longer periods. This is due mainly to the fact that many of the culverts within them have been compromised,” he explained. He emphasised that the ministry’s staff will continue to work on them for the next six months.
Upon taking office, Minister Patterson established a task force of engineers and other officials to address the drainage challenge for Georgetown. This, he reminded is being done in three phases; the first is to be completed by May 2016, the second by May 2017, and the third by May 2019.
“We’re looking for May 2016, for all the major encumbrances and bottlenecks such as culverts to be completely cleared. By 2017, obviously there are the bigger issues. Enhanced drainage canals for relief, total rehabilitation of sluices, bigger pumps, bigger reservoirs, but that is a bigger infrastructure programme. That’s the second phase and then the third phase, where the budget provides for; we will try to line some of the major canals. If we can get them concrete-lined, they will be easier to clean.”
The Ministry is aiming to ensure that Georgetown can drain at its current capacity of 1.5 inches of water within 24 hours. Given that the coast is below the ‘mean sea level,’ drainage is dependent on the use of gravity-fed sluices and canals, along with heavy-duty pumps. The use of a reservoir will see excess water being drained from Georgetown and stored until it can be drained into the sea or Demerara River at a later convenient time. This is one of the long-term plans according to Minister Patterson.
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